Halloween is not canceled. Yes, Covid-19 has canceled the annual Halloween parties. Watching scary movies with your friends has turned into a live-tweet event and most areas have banned trick-or-treat. However, Halloween has been celebrated longer than plastic-wrapped fun-sized confections have been in existence. In my house, we celebrate Samhain. (pronounced Sow-hain). While Samhain activities are more fun with friends, they can add novelty to the Halloween that almost wasn’t. Here’s a list of stay at home spooky alternatives to gatherings:
- Apple Dolls – Before pumpkin carving, turnips
and apples were carved for the spirits visiting our realms to use as corporal
bodies. Apples were carved into faces and dried before stringing into wreaths or
given doll bodies. Apple flesh is must easier to carve than pumpkins so little
hands get the thrill of using a “real knife”. They can do so safely with a
small pairing or pocket-knife without the fear of slipping on a tough skin. Once
the faces are carved, they are dropped into a food dehydrator overnight. The
faces shrink and crinkle as they dry which “age them” overnight. Kids love the excitement
of a big morning reveal. Photo by Sacredwicca.com
